Forum Discussion

JoeSef's avatar
JoeSef
Tuning in
2 years ago

Breach of contract

I recently came to the end of my contract and did not intend renewing because I was moving house in the same month (August). I went on to VM website to notify them of my intent, on logging in I noticed there was a new offer for me to stay with them. I looked at the offer of £27 per month and I accepted because it was a good deal and cheaper than I was paying, they got me up and running in my new property and all was good. Until I got my bill that is, they are charging me £65 per month, I contacted VM and they said that that offer is no longer available and went on to say best they can do is £36. I have the contract they sent and it clearly states £27 per month for 18 months, how the he'll can they justify a 60% increase? How are people supposed to manage finances and budget when VM pull stunts like this?. Am I able to pull out of the contract? I just want to go with BT now and be done with them.

Joe

  • goslow's avatar
    goslow
    Alessandro Volta
    2 years ago

    Presumably you are outside your 14 day cooling off period if you have had a bill since renewing?

    • JoeSef's avatar
      JoeSef
      Tuning in
      2 years ago

      Hi Goslow, yes I am out of the 14 day period, however, I didn't receive my first bill until after this period and wasn't aware of the situation until then.

      • goslow's avatar
        goslow
        Alessandro Volta
        2 years ago

        The business of customers renewing on what seems to be a good package/price only to find VM does not honour it seems to have had a lot of mentions on here recently.

        Where did the offer appear? When you were logged into 'My Virgin Media' within an 'offers' section for existing customers?

        I'd suggest you wait here for a VM forum team member to reply and see if they will look into it for you (usually they reply within a few days). Sometimes they do offer to help, sometimes they 'signpost' you elsewhere.

        If no joy via that route you would be looking at a formal complaint to VM first of all (which is a required first step but unlikely to be useful) with a view to escalating to third party arbitration if unresolved.

  • JoeSef's avatar
    JoeSef
    Tuning in
    2 years ago

    I just think it's ridiculous, the offer was for £27 per month and they just reneged on it, I did log in and raised a complaint, however, having given them the 28 day period to respond I never received any response. I contacted them again and was met with the £36 offer, it stinks! Thanks for replying BTW.

    • goslow's avatar
      goslow
      Alessandro Volta
      2 years ago

      The formal complaint process is that VM has 8 weeks to resolve your complaint.

      If they issue a 'resolution' within the 8 weeks you can accept or reject it. If you reject the resolution (and VM intends to do no more about it) they should issue you with a deadlock letter.

      With the deadlock letter (or in any event after 8 weeks has passed) you can go to arbitration

      https://www.commsombudsman.org/our-process

      VM has a poor record in similar topics on here in providing the deadlock letters. If so, speak to Ombudsman Services on how to proceed and include it as an aggravating factor in the case.

  • Tom_W1's avatar
    Tom_W1
    Forum Team
    2 years ago

    Hi JoeSef thanks for your post here in the Community although we're sorry to hear of the concerns you've raised here.

    We would really like to investigate this further for you, so kindly expect a PM from me to arrive shortly and respond directly when you can!
    Many thanks

  • japitts's avatar
    japitts
    Very Insightful Person
    2 years ago
    JoeSef wrote:

    I recently came to the end of my contract and did not intend renewing

    Just to pick up on one thing though.

    VM's contracts are not fixed-term ones that "end" or "need renewing", they are rolling contracts with a minimum term. There is a popular misconception of being "out of contract" that should, technically, be referred to as "out of minimum term" - if you have no contract, you have no services.

    I'd certainly assume any discounted offer would come with a new minimum term, I fail to see why else would VM offer a reduction if they don't get any commitment in return.

    • BrownSauce's avatar
      BrownSauce
      On our wavelength
      2 years ago

      And everything you have said above is absolutely true, there is no indication from the OP’s initial post that the offer wasn’t for a minimum term which is fine.

      Now from VM’s perspective, it does seem odd that they would offer someone a new contract for less money than they are currently on, but as evidenced from other threads it would seem that VM’s entire customer services and marketing provision has simply collapsed from the point of view of being a coherent operation,customers seem to be being offered ‘deals’ which they accept but simply aren’t being honoured because they ‘don’t exist’ as far as different departments are concerned.

      But if this is down to complete corporate incompetence on VM’s part, that’s not the poor customer’s problem, if they are made, what a reasonable person might consider a reasonable offer, and they accept it, as far as the Law is concerned, that’s it; a legally binding contract has been made, and VM ‘have’ to honour it.

      Furthermore, as ‘Cardiffman282’ mentions making an offer which you can’t fulfil, but claiming that you can do it for only £x more, is a ‘bait and switch’ manoeuvre, and that is illegal!

      As we are all aware, OFCOM can be a fairly toothless body, but there are other entities who can come down on VM like the proverbial ‘Wrath of God’, if say a Government, looking to improve their popularity might have a quite word with said bodies to come down really hard just to show they are on the side of the consumer.

  • JoeSef's avatar
    JoeSef
    Tuning in
    2 years ago

    The emails I received, I understood them to be the contract, however, they say that offer is no longer available, and the mod on here that pm'd me (he was very helpful) could not find that offer. I don’t know anymore, it's all getting a bit complicated.

  • japitts's avatar
    japitts
    Very Insightful Person
    2 years ago

    I'd take from those screenshots that these are "pre"-contract. VM have used these for a couple of years now, I suspect the legal structure is that these are an "invitation to treat" and response to these is "acceptance"

    • BrownSauce's avatar
      BrownSauce
      On our wavelength
      2 years ago

      But what on Earth is a ‘Pre-Contract’? I do take your point about an ‘invitation to treat’, but that implies that there should be some link in the email for the customer to either accept or decline the ‘invitation’, also look at the wording, ‘Please make sure you are happy with the agreement you are entering into’, if this was just an invitation then what agreement? Secondly why mention the statutory cancellation rights? It is obligatory to remind customers of this when a new contract is entered into, otherwise no!

      If, as you say, a response to this is acceptance of the contract, then how are they supposed to respond? No link in the email to do so, as we know, VM have no customer-facing email addresses, so a reply to this email is unlikely to go anywhere.

      No let’s be honest here, Pre-contract is just another VM ‘made-up’ things, like ‘provisional installation dates’, the latter of which may been kicked into touch by the adjudicators more than once - legally, the OP has a binding contact with VM for the sum of £27 per month for the next 18 months, for which VM are obligated to provide the specified service.

      If VM is so disorganised that different sections of them don’t communicate or one part makes an offer that is accepted but another part of the company is blissfully unaware of it - that’s not the customer’s fault, is it?

    • Ilyas_Y's avatar
      Ilyas_Y
      Forum Team
      2 years ago

      Hi JoeSef, thanks for reaching out to us. 👋🏼

      I can see you are in a private conversation with my colleague.
      Please keep them updated for any other issues you may have and they will assist.

      Kind regards,
      Ilyas.

  • QuoteThisRaven's avatar
    QuoteThisRaven
    On our wavelength
    2 years ago

    Call Retentions. Tell them to look into your contract, pre-contract, the term is not important. Say you demand it honoured. If you get BS, hang the call, try again. Its as simple as getting a honest person in the other side and he or she will rectify the contract.